Thursday, January 06, 2011

Hugh

This week I’d like to share some video clips of Ollie the Sea Otter’s first two months at the Aquarium of the Pacific.

The first clip of the video was taken on her first night at the Aquarium when she fell asleep by me.

The second clip has Ollie in the water crying while grooming her head. It reminded me of the old TV commercials where a lady is complaining because she had just washed her hair and couldn’t do a thing with it! She’s actually crying because she wanted me in the water with her while she was grooming. At this point in time we were working on her being more independent and having her work her fur all by herself.

The third and fourth clips are probably the most adorable. They are of Ollie getting comfortable in my lap by seemingly fluffing out the fabric of my waders as if it were a pillow. She then quickly falls asleep after resting her head. What follows is a close up look at the fur, paws and nose of a sleeping baby otter. And yes, it was a neat experience to have a baby otter totally at ease and asleep on my lap.

The fifth clip shows how bonded Ollie was to her caretakers during the first week she was at the Aquarium. While Ollie was floating asleep at my side I decided to try to quietly exit the pool for a quick break from the cold water. Well, as soon as I left her side she woke up and gave me a baby otter scolding for moving!

The sixth clip is just a cute scene of Ollie sleeping in the water while cuddling a strand of artificial kelp.

The last clip is of Ollie vocalizing on the deck after we had raised the water level in her pad. She seems to enjoy jumping into the water from the top deck.

Even after spending Christmas and New Years Day with the plucky little ball of fur I can’t get enough of watching her antics. She has a lot of charisma for a young otter.

Enjoy the video!

Ollie on the top deck of her pad.
| Hugh RyonoOllie vocalizing.
| Hugh Ryono